Liverpool analysis - Solanke surprise pays off, Salah the King of the World and is 4-4-2 back?
Mane issues timely reminder.
Sadio Mane was seen in deep discussion with Jurgen Klopp after Saturdays draw with Chelsea.
Many assumed the Senegalese winger shared the Kops disbelief of him receiving just six minutes of action; instead, as Klopp explained, it was a disagreement over his positioning in the final stages of the game.
His manager will have no issue with the position he took up after 17 minutes, surrounded by his team-mates, in celebration after the opener against Stoke.
It was welcome timing, for both team and individual.
A goal to put his side ahead, and a reminder of what he is capable of in the red – or bold citrus – shirt of Liverpool.
Mane has had a curious season at Anfield, one that has struggled to regain momentum the moment his foot met Edersons head in September.
After that suspension came injury, with last weeks draw in Seville representing his first 90-minute outing since the August win over Crystal Palace.
It was against Sevilla that Mane broke a six-game barren spell in front of goal, while this strike similarly ended half-a-dozen league goals without a game.
His worst run since arriving, probing, menacing last summer.
Stokes back line will remember him, for sure. Aside from his goal, he was a threat down the left-hand side, his contributions in particular forcing Mark Hughes into a change of formation.
The wide man could have had another, too, if not for a lackadaisical finish when through on goal – but atoned for it when setting up Salah for a stunning second.
His standing ovation upon his late substitution – as well as departing the field at full time – made clear Mane let his football do the talking.
Solanke surprise pays off.
It was here at Stoke, last season, that Jurgen Klopp sprung a selection surprise, starting both Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ben Woodburn.
That nearly backfired. This one did not. At the age of 20, Dominic Solanke was handed his first Premier League start.
What a setting to do so, just months after he was brought in under the assumption of spending the season with the Under-23s.
Prenton Park is a lot of things, but it is not the Bet 365 (nee Britannia) Stadium on a Wednesday night.
He could have wilted in the cold or frozen in the spotlight, but instead flourished, partnering Roberto Firmino up front with 67 minutes which belied his inexperience.
It was his flick with teed up Sadio Mane for the opener, and he almost replicated it later in the half, only to see Mane with an uncharacteristic panic in front of the keeper.
Though the technique was impressive, perhaps more so was the wherewithal he possessed to tee up his team-mate for the opener.
Stoke stopped to appeal, thinking the ball had drifted out of play under the feet of Joe Gomez, but Solanke adhered to that sagest piece of advice: play to the whistle.
Play he did, leaving Mane the simplest of finishes, Stoke complaints in his ears.
Indeed, Solanke could have capped a fine showing with his first-ever league goal, but failed to beat Lee Grant.
On this performance, that will come.
His inclusion in the England squad led to a number of scratched heads; there will be a few less now.
Mignolets mixed night.
Simon Mignolet was central to Liverpools last visit to Stoke, producing two wonder saves which still seem impossible.
Here was something just as, if not more impossible: the Belgian remaining on the pitch after a blatant red card offence.
After Joel Matip misjudged a bouncing ball, Mame Biram Diouf bore down on goal on the edge of the area, but found himself halted by Mignolets sprawling leg.
Initial intuition said penalty, but it was correctly deemed outside the area.
Expectation said a sending off, and Liverpool down to 10, but referee Martin Atkinson deemed it a yellow only.
Stoke were incredulous and rightly so, but that gave Liverpool the fortune needed in a fixture like this.
In a game of tight margins, Lady Luck can swing a certain way.
There will be criticism of Mignolet – it was a moment akin to his penalty concession against Leicester in September – but what should not be dismissed was how well he dealt with everything else.
Mark Hughes tactics were clear from the off-set, and the Reds keeper was prepared for that.
He punched and caught and commanded, dealing with the aerial bombardment.
No wonder saves and a referee decision to make the home support wonder, but ultimately a job well done by Mignolet.
4-4-2 back with a bang.
It seems as if 4-4-2 is back with a bang.
After unleashing it against West Ham at the start of the month, Jurgen Klopp ended it with its return. The philosophy was sound enough. Stoke, like West Ham, deploy a back three.
With two players – the full back and wide man – in tandem, the gaps in between Stokes central defenders and wing backs could be exploited.
Liverpool spent much of the first half exploiting, Sadio Manes opening goal coming from such a scenario.
Joe Gomez overlapped Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain; Stoke were overloaded out wide, overwhelmed in the middle.
Game over? Not quite. Mark Hughes, to his credit, decided to change his tactics and matched the Reds shape.
Realising Mame Biram Diouf was better served up front, rather than being tortured by Sadio Mane, was one of the easiest decisions the Welsh boss will make this season. Klopp didnt blink, however.
Even as Stoke began to enjoy overloading the visitors – Alberto Moreno in particular down the left-hand side, with Sadio Mane not offering enough help – the German believed in the line-up he chose, in the system he set them up in.
Hughes provided more resistance than the beleaguered Slaven Bilic, and gave Klopps 4-4-2 its first real test.
There was a danger, as the first half ended, that this would become a shoot-out, with Stoke quicker to the draw and Liverpool firing blanks.
Sadio Mane and Mo Salah ensured that did not happen, and that 4-4-2 now has seven away goals in two outings.
The German is sometimes lamented for his faith in his side and methods, but here, it was an essential part of their three points.
Salah king of the world.
Forget about the King of Egypt. Mo Salah might be King of the World. Eyebrows were raised when the winger, 15 goals before this evening, was omitted from the starting line-up. He needed resting at some point, of course.
But in this game, at this time, during this run of form? Whats guts in German?.
Ninety minutes later – 23 of those in the legs of Salah – Liverpools summer signing now has 17 goals and has solidified his status as one of the leagues most exciting players.
Forget the talk of him being a bargain, though that is true. He now needs to be spoken of in exalted terms, among some of Europes world class talents.
This is not a purple patch, nor is it a run of form; this is a player approaching his prime, tearing teams to shreds.
His first goal was a spectacular one, exhibiting his technique, firing a spinning ball beyond Lee Grant before the goalkeeper realised Sadio Mane had crossed it.
His second, putting the sheen on the performance, was a more typical Salah strike; tenacious, relentless, composed.
A hint of Lionel Messi, dare it be said. One of the most memorable substitute showings for Liverpool in recent times, and one of the most timely too.
But the six changes from the weekends game worked, with undoubted quality in place to change the game if needed.
Salah did just that with a remarkable cameo performance.
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